Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. First Thessalonians 5:18
Many sincere people wonder, “What is God’s will for my life?” From that questioning they may ponder:
“Should I go to college A or college B, or go to college at all?”
“Should I take this job or that one? Or stay where I am?”
“Is it God’s will for me to marry that person, or stay single for now?” And so on.
Believers know that God expresses His will for us in His word, the Bible. But of course, there is no verse in scripture telling you to whether you should major in cyber-security or Sanskrit. However, the Bible does tell us, “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (I Thess. 5:16-18) In only nine words, the Bible gives us three commands: keep rejoicing, keep praying, keep being thankful. Naturally, those don’t come easy, but who said the life of faith would be a piece of cake?
Thanksgiving should not only be one Thursday in November, but rather a daily, year-long lifestyle. We are to literally give thanks…in all circumstances.
An ancient Chinese fable goes: An old farmer who lived near the border of the country had only one horse but it ran away one day. All his neighbors came to console him; they knew how much he relied on this horse for the heavy work on the farm, and that he would be in trouble without the horse.
But the old man replied, “Well, we can never tell if this isn’t for the better.”
One month later, the horse returned to the farm. Along with it was another mare that had followed the horse all the way home! All his neighbors came to congratulate him; with the new horse the old man would be able to get a lot more work done.
But the old man replied, “Well, we can never tell if this isn’t for the worse.”
The old farmer had a son who loved horse riding, and had decided to take the new horse for rides in the fields. On one of his rides, he lost his balance and fell off the horse. He broke his leg and couldn’t walk for a long time.
This was obviously a tragedy and the neighbors came to console the old man again.
But still the old man replied in the same manner, “Well, we can never tell if this won’t turn out for the better.”
A few months later, war broke out near the border where the old farmer was staying. The government drafted all the young men into the army…except for the boy with the broken leg.
The word for you today is: Give thanks in all circumstances.
S.G.D./S.D.G.
